When I used to think of chemical peels I would think of Samantha on Sex and the City. Her face was red and raw and SCARY! Once I actually learned more about them I learned that they are not scary at all. After my first PCA peel, my face had the slightest flaking and that was it. No intense peeling, no redness, no raw skin. The results may not have been noticeable to anyone except me but after a series of 4 peels, family members who saw me daily did notice a change in my skin.

A chemical peel is a type of chemical exfoliation. It is sloughing away dead skin cells to reveal healthy, fresh skin. You won’t always see visible peeling but this doesn’t mean your treatment wasn’t effective. If you exfoliate on a regular basis you may not see no flaking what so ever. This is because your skin is shedding on a cellular level which cannot be seen by the naked eye.

Chemical peels can be used as a solution for many skin conditions such as acne, fine lines and discoloration of the skin know as hyperpigmentation. PCA chemical peels are also gentle enough to be used on sensitive skin.

The skincare line we use at West 13th Salon, PCA skin, has a great routine for chemical peels. We always start out with the least intense peel the first time you visit to gauge skin sensitivity. At your next visit we can use the same peel or can step up to a more intense peel depending on how your skin reacted to the first visit. With a more intense peel you will experience more peeling and could have a little redness but this should go away in a matter of hours. For the best results we recommend a series of 4 chemical peels every 4 weeks.

Aftercare for your chemical peels is pretty easy. PCA has an awesome after care kit that has everything you need for the next week to get the maximum results. The most important things to remember are to moisturize a ton and to remember to use your broad spectrum sunscreen daily.